Baidu appoint AI expert as COO

Baidu are traditionally known as an online search engine, but they have expanded their business way beyond this into many areas of cutting-edge technology and challenging projects – sound familiar? Well, they have also now appointed a former Microsoft executive who is set to boost their artificial intelligence (AI) expertise. It has been a busy week for the Chinese technology and internet giants. They began the week with an announcement saying that their augmented reality lab was operational and followed that with news of their latest major appointment.

Baidu have announced the appointment of Qi Lu as their new group president and chief operating officer, in what has been viewed as a major coup for the company. The appointment of Lu is a major boost to the company’s increasingly prominent ventures into developing and creating AI functions and products.

Baidu share price over the last monthAs of 17 January 2017: 176.48

SOURCE: Yahoo Finance

Most recently, Lu ran Microsoft’s applications and services business, and also previously headed up the company’s huge search division, having joined in 2009 following over a decade working for Yahoo.

Baidu chairman and group CEO, Robin Li, said in a statement: “We are delighted to welcome Dr Qi Lu to our senior executive team. Dr Lu possesses a wealth of leadership and management experience, and is a leading authority in the area of artificial intelligence. I am confident that Dr Lu will make major contributions to the overall strength of our management and technology."

Li also went on to hint that his company could be looking to make further appointments in the near future, especially relating to AI, where he said that Baidu will ‘need to continue attracting the best global talent’.

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